Dominique Thurmond, right, tutors a refugee student at the West Michigan Refugee Education and Cultural Center in Grand Rapids.Courtesy photo

GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- A Grand Rapids refugee education organization has seen an uptick in student enrollment since moving into its new home earlier this year.

The West Michigan Refugee Educational and Cultural Center opened inside St. Alphonsus Catholic Church, 224 Carrier Ave. NE, in August and is celebrating its new space.

The refugee center will hold an open house from 5-7 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 8 inside the church’s school at the corner of Lafayette and Leonard streets.

“The location is great,” said Susan Kragt, executive director. “We’re right on a bus line, so people can come from all over greater Grand Rapids to our program.”

Kragt said its former location, inside Hope Academy of West Michigan, 240 Brown St., was expanding and needed the space that the refugee organization was using.

“This is walking distance for many of our students,” Kragt said of St. Alphonsus, explaining that many students and families often had transportation issues at the other location. “Many families had life changes that made it difficult for them to get to where we were.”